Page 27 of Grave Flowers
I touched my cheek. It was warm. Whether because of Aeric’s scheming or not, I had drunk enough to loosen my wits and had referred to Inessa in the present tense. I could only imagine how pink my face was from the wine.
Blinking furiously, I tried to banish the dizziness to the edges of my vision. There was a chance Aeric had wished to make me drink purely because he liked drinking as well. Drunks loved company. But there was another chance that he’d been trying to draw information from me. Was there something specific he was looking for? If he knew my true reason for being here—to assassinate him—he’d merely need to have me arrested, tried, and summarily executed … so what was he after? He’d distracted me from asking more about the play and had directed the conversation to my sisterhood with Inessa. Then, when I’d referred to her in the present tense, he’d reacted strongly. Wouldn’t most assume I’d simply had a slip of the tongue? People in grief sometimes referred to the deceased in the present tense, their hearts not ready to accept that their loved one no longer lived.
I found myself walking quickly again, my pace in tempo with my terrified thoughts. It was impossible for Aeric to know Inessa was a ghost, but I feared I’d shown too much. He’d guessed I was hidingsomething.I had to be much more careful around him, and I would neverdrink so carelessly again. Acusan wine was shockingly stronger than our Radixan ones, and I hadn’t been prepared for it … and, more sobering, I hadn’t been prepared for Aeric. I’d assumed he was the stupid drunken boy everyone else saw, one who liked parties and carousing and being handsome and adored.
But I had a sense I had been very wrong.
MOONMIRRORS
Grave Flower Experiment Three
Note: We have moved the experiments to the dungeon after the havoc wreaked on the solarium. It’ll be all right, though! I’ll increase taxes in order to pay for its repairs. I’d been meaning to replace the porcelain stars with jeweled ones anyways.
Appearance
Round centers with no petals. The centers are craggy and pitted, similar to the celestial body they emulate. They are silvery, white, and sometimes even orange, depending on the moon. Somehow, they have an inner light, much like a firefly, which allows them to create their own glow. With these glows, they reflect shadows onto their surfaces.
Behavior without invocation
Obsessed! For whatever reason, these moonmirrors are absolutely obsessed with the moon, hence their name. They are nocturnal (naturally) and keen and cry to the moon every night. Some call their racket a song and say it’s beautiful, but it gives me a headache. I don’t like anything to disturb my sleep. Whatever cycle the moon is in, they copy, whether it’s a full moon, half-moon, crescent, or gibbous.
Invocation
Primeval Mother
who put the Moon in the sky,
we promise not to knock it down,
or eat it,
or hide it under our pillow.
But, O Mother, someday, may we?
Results
I was a little nervous about this experiment. Knock the moon down? Put it under our pillows? What if we said the invocation and the moonmirrors somehow managed to pull the whole sky down? Then where would we be, with no sky? Still, discovery demands bravery, and I am very brave! We attempted to say the invocation during the day, but the moonmirrors slept and did not respond. So we came back that night I was tired and grouchy but tried to put on a good face. My wife said I should dress as a king, but I wanted my comfortable sleep robe. She’s always harassing me—though she did have a good idea the other day. Hire a Fely to help. They are said to have ancient wisdom about the grave flowers. But I must say, I don’t wish to be beholden to them in any way.
Anyways, we said the invocation at night. The moonmirrors were reflecting the moon as they always do. But, suddenly, they went black. Their buds gathered to form one large black circle. The black circle ballooned larger and larger, inflating with some sort of air. The stems stretched like strings, and soon the circle was above our heads.
Complications
Strange silvery liquid dripped from the moonmirors. The large black circle blocked out the light from the moon, and darkness fell, one much darker than any night I’ve ever experienced. Clouds obscured the stars, and with the moon blocked, we could hardly see. We stumbled about, and I ran into the wall. It made my nose bleed, and I got blood on my sleep robe.
Applications
Finally, some success! After all my efforts, I feel like this is long overdue. The strange liquid pooled in their leaves, and we gathered it and gave it to a prisoner. Instant death—and what’s even better, with basically no side effects aside from a silvery hue forming different-shaped crescents on the fingernails, which most wouldn’t notice, as it is truly faint. We are calling it moonrain, and we will bottle and store it. My wife pointed out we need to keep it as secret as possible, so I gave moonrain to everyone else involved in the experiment. I thought maybe I should give it to her too—she has already given me a son—but since he is only five years of age and I would like more sons in case this one is a dud, I decided to let her live.
Chapter
EIGHT
Once I arrived back at the palace, I quickly changed into a breezier dress. I cringed as Inessa’s red dress flooded over my fingers in a silken rush as I pulled out the fresh one, waving off the eager but insufficient Sindony. I meant to head to the garden but thought perhaps I might go to the queen’s quarters. I needed to get inside, but if I asked for access, Aeric or someone else would have time to clear away anything they didn’t want me seeing. The best thing would be for me to gain access without anyone knowing.
It didn’t take me long to find them. The queen’s quarters were located on the far side of the palace. Two large doors, embellished with the crest of the House of Capelian, marked their entry. They were honey oak and made more golden by sunbeams. It was a busy area. Servants, nobles, and guards filled the hall, gathering to talk, clean, or bustle by.
I regarded the keyhole from afar. I could try to pick it. Inessa and I had been taught to pick locks while we were first taught our letters. But even without inspecting it closely, I could tell it was more elaborate than any lock I’d encountered in Radix, making me fear I might not besuccessful. When there finally was a lull in traffic, I hurried forward. I knelt, examined the keyhole, and tested the doorknob to see what mechanism held it closed. As I feared, the lock was terribly complicated and went beyond my skills.
